Pay
In line with similar jobs
$190K–$237K against $166K–$240K, the middle half of what similar US postings state.
From 1,279 postings in the last year. Stated ranges, not salaries paid.
ML Research Engineer, ML Systems
San Francisco, CA; Seattle, WA; New York, NY
Open 6 months, first seen by us 204 days ago- Pay
USD 189,600–237,000/yearAnnual period assumed — pay source
Please reference the job posting's subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full-time position in the locations of San Francisco, New York, Seattle is: $189,600—$237,000 USD PLEASE NOTE: Our policy requires a 90-day waiting period before reconsidering candidates for the same role. This allows us to ensure a fair and thorough evaluation of all applicants.
Read the full posting- Work setting
- Not stated
- Employment
- Not stated
What you’ll work on
Full postingBuild, profile and optimize the training and inference framework
Work with ML teams to speed up their research and model development
Research and integrate state-of-the-art techniques to optimize the ML system
From the employer’s posting
Build, profile and optimize our training and inference framework
Collaborate with ML teams to accelerate their research and development
Research and integrate state-of-the-art technologies to optimize our ML system
What you’ll bring
All qualificationsCore experience
- Experience with multi-node LLM training and inference
- Experience developing large-scale distributed ML systems
- Strong software engineering skills with CUDA, PyTorch, transformers, flash attention
- Strong written and verbal communication; works well cross-functionally
Preferred experience
- Expertise in post-training methods or next-generation LLM use cases (RLHF, tool use, agents, multimodal)
Qualification wording
Experience with multi-node LLM training and inference
Experience with developing large-scale distributed ML systems
Strong software engineering skills, proficient in frameworks and tools such as CUDA, Pytorch, transformers, flash attention, etc.
Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to operate in a cross functional team environment
Demonstrated expertise in post-training methods &/or next generation use cases for large language models including instruction tuning, RLHF, tool use, reasoning, agents, and multimodal
About Scale AI
At Scale, our mission is to develop reliable AI systems for the world's most important decisions.
In the employer’s words · Read in context
Posting record
Report an errorOpen 6 monthsWe first saw this posting 204 days ago and it is still up. Roles open this long are often slow to fill or kept open to collect applications.
- Status in our records
- Live
- First seen by us
- Apr 14, 2026204 days ago
- Recorded sightings
- 247
- Last seen by us
- Nov 4, 2026
These dates show when we found the posting. Check the employer’s website to confirm it is still accepting applications.
How this job compares
Time since we first saw it
Day 204
Up longer than most. Similar jobs usually come down between day 6 and day 69.
From 4,339 similar postings that came down. Coming down is not always a hire.
Scale AI is hiring
19 open jobs
Open jobs by the week we first saw them, last 12 weeks.
- ML Engineer hiring has slowed
- Its jobs tend to stay up a long time
See how this role fits your experience
Add your resume and we’ll mark which of these tools you already use, and point out anything in the posting that could rule you out.
- PyTorch
Where the posting names them
- Experience with developing large-scale distributed ML systems - Strong software engineering skills, proficient in frameworks and tools such as CUDA, Pytorch, transformers, flash attention, etc. - Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to operate in a cross functional team environment
Your next step
Complete your application on job-boards.greenhouse.io. The employer’s form will show what is required.
Applying through Greenhouse
- No account needed: the form is one page, with an “Autofill my application” option that reads your resume.
- Greenhouse doesn’t read resumes over 2.5 MB, or details placed in a header, footer, text box, table or second column. The file still attaches, but a recruiter has to type you in by hand.
Already applied? Track this application
About the role
We file this job under ML Engineer, by the work the posting describes.
ML engineers put machine learning models into products. They write the code that trains, ships, serves and monitors models so a recommendation or prediction works for real users.
Postings ask for strong Python and software engineering, a framework such as PyTorch, cloud services, and more and more often experience with large language models.
A data scientist often works out which model to build; an ML engineer makes it run reliably in production.
US government figures for computer and information research scientists
- Median yearly pay, May 2025
- $140,300
- Expected change, 2025 to 2035
- 21.8% more jobsagainst 3.5% for all jobs
The government has no code for ML engineers, so these figures are for the closest group, computer and information research scientists.
Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025) and Employment Projections (2025 to 2035). Occupation code 15-1221.
Job description
Scale’s ML platform (RLXF) team builds our internal distributed framework for large language model training and inference. The platform has been powering MLEs, researchers, data scientists and operators for fast and automatic training and evaluation of LLM's, as well as evaluation of data quality.
Scale is uniquely positioned at the heart of the field of AI as an indispensable provider of training and evaluation data and end-to-end solutions for the ML lifecycle. You will work closely across Scale’s ML teams and researchers to build the foundation platform that supports all our ML research and development. You will be building and optimizing the platform to enable our next generation of LLM training, inference and data curation.
If you are excited about shaping the future AI via fundamental innovations, we would love to hear from you!
You will:- Build, profile and optimize our training and inference framework
- Collaborate with ML teams to accelerate their research and development and enable them to develop the next generation of models and data curation
- Research and integrate state-of-the-art technologies to optimize our ML system
- Strong excitement about system optimization
- Experience with multi-node LLM training and inference
- Experience with developing large-scale distributed ML systems
- Strong software engineering skills, proficient in frameworks and tools such as CUDA, Pytorch, transformers, flash attention, etc.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to operate in a cross functional team environment
- Demonstrated expertise in post-training methods &/or next generation use cases for large language models including instruction tuning, RLHF, tool use, reasoning, agents, and multimodal, etc.
Compensation packages at Scale for eligible roles include base salary, equity, and benefits. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position and may be inclusive of several career levels at Scale; it will be determined during the interview process based on work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, qualifications, interview performance, and relevant education or training. Scale employees in eligible roles are also granted equity based compensation, subject to Board of Director approval. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process, and confirm whether the hired role will be eligible for equity grant. You'll also receive benefits including, but not limited to: comprehensive health, dental and vision coverage, retirement benefits, a learning and development stipend, and generous PTO. Additionally, this role may be eligible for additional benefits such as a commuter stipend.
Please reference the job posting's subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full-time position in the locations of San Francisco, New York, Seattle is:
$189,600—$237,000 USD
PLEASE NOTE: Our policy requires a 90-day waiting period before reconsidering candidates for the same role. This allows us to ensure a fair and thorough evaluation of all applicants.
About Us:
At Scale, our mission is to develop reliable AI systems for the world's most important decisions. Our products provide the high-quality data and full-stack technologies that power the world's leading models, and help enterprises and governments build, deploy, and oversee AI applications that deliver real impact. We work closely with industry leaders like Meta, Ernst & Young, Mayo Clinic, Time Inc., the Government of Qatar, and U.S. government agencies including the Army and Air Force. We are expanding our team to accelerate the development of AI applications.
We believe that everyone should be able to bring their whole selves to work, which is why we are proud to be an inclusive and equal opportunity workplace. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability status, gender identity or Veteran status.
We are committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and mental disabilities. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation in the application or recruiting process due to a disability, please contact us at accommodations@scale.com. Please see the United States Department of Labor's Know Your Rights poster for additional information.
We comply with the United States Department of Labor's Pay Transparency provision.
PLEASE NOTE: We collect, retain and use personal data for our professional business purposes, including notifying you of job opportunities that may be of interest and sharing with our affiliates. We limit the personal data we collect to that which we believe is appropriate and necessary to manage applicants’ needs, provide our services, and comply with applicable laws. Any information we collect in connection with your application will be treated in accordance with our internal policies and programs designed to protect personal data. Please see our privacy policy for additional information.
Source details
Source notes
Source excerptsSelected passages from the saved posting. Check the full description for conditions and exceptions.
- Pay
Please reference the job posting's subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full-time position in the locations of San Francisco, New York, Seattle is: $189,600—$237,000 USD PLEASE NOTE: Our policy requires a 90-day waiting period before reconsidering candidates for the same role. This allows us to ensure a fair and thorough evaluation of all applicants.
- Location & working pattern
San Francisco, CA; Seattle, WA; New York, NY
Working pattern and location restrictions need checking in the full posting.
- Work authorization
This passage needs a closer read in the full description.